carnerd3000
Newbie
Yesterday I had to go somewhere in the morning, and a few minutes after leaving my house, my Suburban started hesitating when accelerating, and then around 15 seconds after that it turned off completely while driving. I was able to get it to start once or twice, but it had a hard time doing so, and when the engine was on it died again as soon as I increased the throttle. I got the battery light on my dash after each time the engine died, and at one point I smelled sulfur, so I don't know if I was just stressing out the battery or something. I did have to get the vehicle towed back to my house.
Today when I went to look at it, there was still power and I was able to at least crank the engine, but still no start. I checked the battery, and it was at 12.3 volts. I also checked the terminals to the battery, and there was a little corrosion on the positive terminal, but it didn't seem like enough to hurt the connection substantially. I took the alternator out and had it checked at an auto parts store, and it was still fine. I did try to check the wires/cables from the battery to the alternator using a voltmeter, as well as the 175-amp fuse that's attached to the radiator fan shroud (although honestly, I do wonder if I properly checked those cables), but from what I could tell nothing was wrong. Also, the battery I have now was bought last year, so it would be weird if it was the problem, but I guess anything is possible. Although, to be fair, my Suburban was sitting outside for 3 months due to a couple of repairs I had to do. This was from February to May, and I did go through a somewhat snowy winter in the Northeast. The battery was actually in the back of the vehicle while it was off the road, but of course it was still in freezing temperatures. Maybe that could have done it? I'm thinking of taking the battery to a place to have it load tested, at least if I don't know what to do next.
Today when I went to look at it, there was still power and I was able to at least crank the engine, but still no start. I checked the battery, and it was at 12.3 volts. I also checked the terminals to the battery, and there was a little corrosion on the positive terminal, but it didn't seem like enough to hurt the connection substantially. I took the alternator out and had it checked at an auto parts store, and it was still fine. I did try to check the wires/cables from the battery to the alternator using a voltmeter, as well as the 175-amp fuse that's attached to the radiator fan shroud (although honestly, I do wonder if I properly checked those cables), but from what I could tell nothing was wrong. Also, the battery I have now was bought last year, so it would be weird if it was the problem, but I guess anything is possible. Although, to be fair, my Suburban was sitting outside for 3 months due to a couple of repairs I had to do. This was from February to May, and I did go through a somewhat snowy winter in the Northeast. The battery was actually in the back of the vehicle while it was off the road, but of course it was still in freezing temperatures. Maybe that could have done it? I'm thinking of taking the battery to a place to have it load tested, at least if I don't know what to do next.
